Ella

About Ella

Set deep in the highlands, Ella is a backpacker-meets-romantic hill town wrapped in tea estates and waterfalls. Catch a sunrise on Little Adam's Peak, stand beneath the cinematic Nine Arch Bridge, then sip Ceylon tea on a cliff-edge café. Beyond the classic hikes, guided tea-plantation tours reveal the full plucking-to-tasting process, and hands-on cooking classes teach traditional Sri Lankan dhal curry and hoppers.

Top experiences

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  Nine Arch Bridge

  A 1921 colonial railway viaduct curving through emerald jungle — Sri Lanka's most-photographed bridge.

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  Little Adam's Peak hike

  An easy 45-minute climb to a 360° viewpoint over Ella Gap and the tea plantations.

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  Ella Rock viewpoint

  A demanding 4-hour return hike to a dramatic cliff edge over the southern plains.

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  Ravana Falls

  A 25-metre cascade tumbling beside the road, linked to the Ramayana epic.

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  Scenic train from Nuwara Eliya

  One of the world's most beautiful train rides — Nanu Oya to Ella through tea country.

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  Scenic hill-country train ride

  The famed Kandy–Ella line through tea estates and cloud forest.

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  Tea factory tour & tasting

  Walk a working factory and taste single-estate Ceylon teas.

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  Nine Arch Bridge & Little Adam's Peak hike

  Iconic viaduct plus an easy summit hike near Ella.

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  Horton Plains & World's End trek

  Early-morning cloud-forest trek to a sheer 800 m escarpment.

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  Nine Arch Bridge

  Colonial-era railway viaduct arching over jungle in Ella.

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  Ravana Falls

  25 m roadside cascade steeped in Ramayana legend.

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  Lipton's Seat

  The panoramic viewpoint where Sir Thomas Lipton surveyed his estates.

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  Horton Plains National Park

  Cloud-forest plateau, montane grassland and the World's End cliff.